Reassurance
by shanz.gribben
Summary: SwanQueen, set after Emma runs away from her family. Regina goes looking for her, also running from something. Originally a oneshot, but now I"m turning it into a multi-chapter. Trigger warning from chapter 7 onwards. Rape and child abuse and attempted Suicide
1. Chapter 1

Emma curled up into a ball in the back seat of her Bug and wept. Her magic, that she thought her family loved and accepted, had just almost killed her own father. She sobbed harder as she remembered her mother snapping at her, remembered the fear in Henry's eyes. She knew she would be stuck out here for a while. The Snow Queen's ice-wall made it impossible to leave Storybrooke but she couldn't go back to her family either. They were terrified of her, they would turn her away.  
Suddenly a knock on the door interrupted her thoughts. Emma looked up to see Regina, looking through the window at her, her face furrowed into an expression of genuine concern.

"I'm really not in the mood right now Regina. I don't want to hurt anybody" Emma told her, winding down the window.

"You can't hurt me. I am one of the few people you can't hurt right now. I have magic too" Regina reminded her, opening the passenger door and hopping into the car beside Emma.

"I brought you hot chocolate with cinnamon" Regina said, handing Emma a steaming mug.

"Thank you" Emma replied gratefully, taking a sip of the drink, which made her feel slightly better.

"Now why are you really here Regina? We both know you don't really care that much about me" Emma asked.

"I'm running from something too if you must know but for your information Ms Swan I do actually care about you as well. You are Henry's mother and that counts for something in my book" Regina said.  
Another tremor of magic shook Emma's body then and Regina put an arm comfortingly around her shoulder. The magic stopped instantly with Regina's body so close to Emma.

"Now let me help you Emma" Regina said kindly. Emma nodded and Regina pressed her lips against Emma's. After a moment of shock Emma felt herself opening up to the kiss, parting her lips to give Regina more access. Regina pulled Emma gently on to her lap, sliding a hand under Emma's shirt and then her bra as Emma moaned. Regina took Emma's reaction as encouragement and with her other hand, she unzipped Emma's jeans and slid her fingers into moisture.

"Oh Regina yes..." Emma moaned, hips bucking with need. Sensing how badly the other woman needed this, Regina increased her tempo and added her thumb on Emma's clit, rubbing until Emma cried out with a final buck of her hips and then collapsed onto Regina, finally feeling better.

"Thank you Regina, you have no idea how much I needed that. I had no idea either"

"That's quite alright dear. Are you feeling better now?" Regina asked, running her fingers soothingly through Emma's hair. Emma nodded and sank, exhausted into Regina's chest. There would be time to talk later but Regina was content to let Emma rest against her shoulder for now.


	2. Chapter 2

Emma sat up and looked at the woman beside her, wondering if the love she felt for Regina right now was due to Regina being the only one who could understand her right now, or if these feelings had been buried deep inside her for a long time. Regina looked at Emma and opened her mouth to speak..

"Emma, I know that you're with Hook and I don't expect you to reciprocate, what I just did. I understand that this was a one-time thing and I get it if you never want to speak of it again. You're straight and I respect that, if I'm being honest, I don't truly understand my feelings for you after we've hated each other for so long…" Regina broke off as Emma interrupted her.

"Regina, stop right there, I don't want this to be a one- time thing, I've wanted to be with you form that moment when Henry first woke up in the hospital."

"You mean after he ate that apple turnover that was meant to kill you?" Regina asked, raising her eyebrow, questioning Emma's sanity.

"Look I know that it sounds messed up, but I love you and I want to be with you, forever Regina, I know you've been hurt so many times that you find it hard to open up and trust people, so do I, I grew up being dumped into foster homes, never staying with one person long enough to form a bond, I shut off from people, because that way, they couldn't hurt me. But I don't want to shut you out, I don't want to shut anyone out of my life anymore" Emma told her, taking Regina's hand.

"Again Emma, I'm the reason that you grew up an orphan, your parents gave you up because of me, and yet you love me?" Regina reminded her.

"That was the Evil Queen, you've changed Regina, more than you realize, you are able to love, you let Henry in, you can let me in too, I've seen you vulnerable, I've seen every side of you and I love all of it" Emma tod her, kissing Regina gently on the cheek.

I love you too Emma, I have from the moment you pinned me up against the wall in that cupboard after Henry ate that turnover, your passionate love for him, made me see you completely differently. You let your emotions rule you and while that is the reason that your magic is so out of control, it also makes you very endearing" Regina said, allowing Emma's lips to meet hers briefly.

There was no longer a need for the frantic sex that had happened just moments ago, they could afford to wait a while now. They both loved each other and that was all that mattered to them for now.


	3. Chapter 3

"Are you ready to go home, Emma darling? Your whole family is worried sick and I hate seeing Henry so upset" Regina asked her, reaching up to stroke her hair.

"Uh, I guess" Emma replied, feeling guilty that she had been gone so long.

"I can drive if you want me to?" Regina said. Emma nodded and the two of them got out of the car and got into the front, with Regina at the wheel. Emma wouldn't shift her hand off of Regina's leg the entire ride, as if she was scared to let go. Mercifully, it was a short drive back to the Charming's apartment.

"Don't let go of me?" Emma begged Regina once they got out of the car. Regina nodded and took her hand and the two of them walked upstairs, holding each other tightly.

"Oh Emma thank goodness you're alright" Snow cried as soon as the two women entered the apartment. Snow leapt from her seat and pulled Emma into a hug.

"Regina, thank you so much for finding her and bringing her home" David said, with a grateful smile at Regina.

"That's quite alright dears, I actually care a lot about Emma, more than I would've previously had the courage to admit" she said.

"What do you mean Regina?" Snow asked.

"We're in love Mom, and we know that we've both hurt each other a lot in the past, but we both also know that we can work through it because we love each other" Emma told her mother.

"I would really like your blessing on this Snow, and I'm sure Emma would too. I love your daughter, I truly do and I want to be with her forever" Regina said, with a pleading look at Emma's parents.

"Whatever makes our daughter happy, right dear?" David said, reaching for Snow's hand. Snow looked at him and then nodded.

"Okay, my step-mother's going out with my daughter, I guess I can get used to it if you keep the affection to a minimum in front of me" Snow said.

"Of course dear, I promise that I have only the best intentions for your daughter" Regina assured her, squeezing Emma's hand again.

"This is exactly the way thing should be between you two. I've hated all these years of watching you guys fight and feeling like I have to choose a side" Henry said, embracing both his mothers.

"Well now you never have to feel that way again dear. Our feelings for each other don't change the way we feel about you at all" Regina told him, Emma nodded in agreement, pulling their son into the embrace with them.

"Can I say something Emma?" Elsa asked.

"Sure Elsa" Emma said.

"I was wrong before when I said that it was Anna's love that saved me. Yes that was important, but what's more important than the love I have for Anna or the love you have for Henry or even Regina, is that we need to be able to love ourselves, and accept our magic as a part of who we are" Elsa told her.

"Elsa's right Emma dear, while True Love and family are hugely important, self- love is also important" Regina said, reaching one of her hands out to Elsa. After a moment of hesitation, Emma reached her hand out to Elsa's other hand and completed the circle. A warm glow radiated from all of their hands and Emma finally felt her magic relaxing.

"It must be nice to have magic and be useful" said Henry sadly.

"What do you mean kid?" Emma asked with concern.

"Well I'm just ordinary, I can't do magic, I can't do anything" he moped.

"Oh Henry, you are so much more than ordinary. You have the Heart of the Truest Believer. You brought Emma here and made her believe. None of this would have been possible without you. I could never have loved again if I hadn't adopted you. You don't need magic to be special" Regina said, letting go of Emma to look her son directly in the eyes.

"Regina's right Henry, you brought us all together, don't underestimate that" Emma said, joining Regina on the floor in front of Henry.

"Now come on guys, I'll make us dinner" Snow said, Henry nodded and the trio embraced.


	4. Chapter 4

"What are you thinking about Emma darling?" Regina asked. They were sitting in her lounge together having a drink. They'd been officially dating for about a month now.

"I was just thinking that I never actually returned the favour for that night in the car" Emma told her, leaning in to kiss Regina hungrily.

"Emma wait, stop" Regina said, pushing Emma away gently.

"Regina sweetheart what's wrong?" Emma asked, her voice brimming with concern.

"I'm not going to pretend that I'm an untouched virgin Emma. I've had a lot of sex in the past, but that was only ever about exerting my power over people, never making a connection. I've never done that, I've never made love in my life and I don't want to rush into it with you. I've been hurt too much in the past and I don't trust easily. So I want to take things slowly with you because I love you, but I am scared to let myself be too vulnerable, because everyone I love always leaves me or gets killed, because of loving me" Regina explained, fighting back tears.

"Oh Regina love, I understand completely. I mean, the last time I ever made love to anyone was when Henry was conceived, and then I got arrested because of him. I have just as many issues with trusting people as you do and I would never, ever want to push you into something you weren't comfortable with. I love you and I will never leave you. I will do anything it takes to prove to you how much I love you and if you want to take things slowly, then I totally respect that. I wasn't expecting that from you, but now that you say it, it makes perfect sense" Emma said, running her fingers gently through her lover's hair.

"Thank you for understanding Emma, it means a lot to me" Regina said, curling up against Emma's shoulder.

"Of course Regina, I could see how hard that was for you, admitting that you're afraid to be vulnerable. But you don't have to pretend with me or hide anything at all. With me you can be however you want to, you don't have to be strong all the time, you're not made of stone, and it is perfectly okay to have emotions and feelings and fears. That is exactly why I love you" Emma told her, pulling Regina into a protective cuddle.


	5. Chapter 5

"So Emma, what was it that made you fall in love with Regina of all people?" Snow asked her daughter. Emma was having dinner alone with her parents that night while Regina was spending some time alone with Henry.

"Well you know, there's the connection with Henry, we bonded a lot when we went to Neverland because we both wanted to save him so badly" Emma said vaguely.

"It always seemed like you two hated each other" David said.

"Well I'm sure you two can understand how quickly hate can turn into love. Didn't you guys hate each other when you first met? Emma pointed out.

"Okay you have a point there, dear. But how are things now?" Snow asked.

"We're not having sex if that's what you asking Mom. We've both been hurt a lot in the past and we both want to take it slow. We want this to work, for Henry's sake as much as ours" Emma said indignantly.

"That wasn't what I was asking exactly Em, but I am glad to hear that you two aren't rushing things. I'm not sure how I'll get my head around my stepmother becoming my daughter in law" Snow said.

"Well that's not on the cards for a while yet Mom. I love Regina and it will happen one day I'm sure, just don't think about the Enchanted Forest side of things and everything will be fine" Emma told her.

"Well the main thing we want is for you to be happy and if Regina is the one to make that happen, then we love her for it. Plus this means that she isn't going to try and kill us any time soon, so that's a bonus" David said.

"She's not the Evil Queen anymore Dad. She's changed and it's wonderful" Emma told her parents, with a smile on her face as she thought of her beloved Regina.


	6. Chapter 6

"So Mom, when are you and Ma going to just get married so we can all live together?" Henry asked Regina, in his typical, inquisitive teenage boy style. Regina tried not to roll her eyes at her son's traditional ideals of relationships and family.

"Well Henry dear, it is still early days between Emma and me. We love each other very much, but it has only been a month and we are enjoying taking things slowly" Regina tried to explain to her son.

"Killian is finally getting over it I think. He's talking to me again anyway" Henry told her.

"Well it's nice that you get on with him, since he was good friends with your father" Regina said, genuinely happy that Hook and Henry were spending time together. It was the one thing that gnawed at her and Emma, that they had very little knowledge of Henry's father to share with him, so they had been relieved when Hook had put aside his feelings about Emma and Regina's sudden relationship and had taken Henry under his wing to tell him stories of Neal. And Henry was happy which made Emma and Regina happy.

"Robin finally woke Marian up, which means that he must've gotten over you as well" Henry reassured his mother.

"Well I'm glad that nobody has to suffer" Regina said with a smile.

"I think that the whole town is really happy for you two" Henry told her.

"They probably just think that there's less chance of me turning back into the Evil Queen and smiting them all if I'm in love with the Saviour" Regina said with a chuckle.

"Yeah that too" Henry agreed.

"But how do you feel about us Henry. You're the one that matters most to both of us?" Regina asked, suddenly serious.

"I'm just happy that both my Moms are happy and that you two don't hate each other anymore. We can finally be a real family" Henry said. Regina smiled at the thought of Henry's idea of a family, just him, Regina and Emma. Her Emma, her beautiful Saviour.


	7. Chapter 7

"Emma why are we doing this?" Regina asked as they pulled up outside the Rabbit Hole, the only bar in Storybrooke.

"Because I am dating the most beautiful woman in town and I want to show her off" Emma told her, as she opened the car door for Regina.

"Well then, I won't deny you the pleasure" Regina said, giving Emma a searing kiss. Emma smiled trumphantly, as the two of them walked into the bar holding hands. People stared in wonder at the couple. Nobody could quite believe that Regina Mills of all people was in a bar, and on the arm of the Savior no less.

"People are staring Emma" Regina fretted nervously.

"Relax babe I'm not leaving your side" Emma promised as she steered them towards the bar and ordered them some wine.

After a glass or two of wine, Regina began to let her guard down and soon the happy couple were on the dance floor and Regina had made them play Michael Buble for her and Emma to dance to.

"Excuse me ladies, but may we talk to you both" Hook asked, approacing them with Elsa at his side.

"Yes what is it?" Regina asked, trying to be nicer to him, now that he wasn't trying to sleep with Emma.

"I just thought that you two would like to know that I'm not lonely anymore. I've found a damsel who's rather lovely" Hook said beaming, giving Elsa's shoulder a squeeze.

"Well Killian, Elsa, I'm truly happy for you two. I would've hated to see you hurting for too long because of me" Emma told him with a genuine smile.

"Yes I agree, everyone deserves a chance at a happy ending" Regina said smiling. Hook and Elsa nodded gratefully and scurried off to enjoy each other.

"God Regina you're so sexy right now" Emma said, almost hungrily.

"Emma please, you promised we wouldn't rush things" Regina warned her.

"We've been together three months Regina" Emma said, backing Regina to the wall, fire burning in her eyes.

"Emma don't, please don't" Regina pleaded. But Emma kept advancing towards her and Regina could feel ancient fears of repressed traumas swelling inside her and she panicked. Emma was thrown into a wall with Regina's hand wrapped around her throat.

"I said no" Regina screamed, tightening her grip

"Regina, please" Emma was the one pleading now. Tears welled in her eyes and that was all it took to snap Regina back into reality. She released Emma and stepped back in horror, hating herself for what she'd just done. Emma looked at her, terrified for a second, before bolting for her car.

"Emma wait, I'm so sorry, I can explain" Regina called, tears staining her cheeks. But Emma didn't look back.

"I can explain" Regina wept feebly, but Emma was gone and Regina teleported to her bedroom and broke down, loud sobs tearing through her body. She had blown everything because she had been scared. She had hurt Emma and Emma now hated her as much as Regina hated herself.

The phone rang then, Regina had half expected it to and she picked it up, unsurprised to hear David's voice on the other line.

"What the hell happened Regina? My daughter just walked in crying and bruised, saying that you strangled her" David demanded.

"Emma was coming on too strong, she backed me into a corner and I panicked, she was reminding me too much of her grandfather. I'm so sorry, truly I am" Regina sobbed, desperate for David to understand her guilt.

"You can come over in the morning to explain yourself properly. Emma knows that she did something wrong, but she doesn't know what. Snow and I won't be leaving her side though" David said, being more gentle now; upon hearing the sobs of the usually emotionally reserved woman.

"That's fine, as long as Henry won't be there. I want to explain to Snow, I owe her that and I will tell my son the truth one day, but he's so young and innocent and I'm not ready to take that innocence from him as it was ripped from me" Regina told him, slowly getting control of her sobs.

"Okay Regina I can agree to that, Snow and I both think there's more reason behind the way you treated her in the past" David said.

"I promise I will explain everything tomorrow, but I have to warn you that it will not be pleasant for either of you to hear" she warned.

"Snow always wondered if her father had hurt you, so she'll be expecting that" David told Regina.

"It was more than just Leopold, but now I have to sleep if I'm going to have the strength to explain everything" Regina said pleadingly.

"Okay Regina, good night" David said and hung up.

Regina collapsed on the bed, exhausted and thought about how badly she'd screwed up and how badly she'd been screwed up by her past, before crawling ti her pillow and crying herself to sleep.


	8. Chapter 8

Regina teleported to the door of the Charming's apartment, the morning after the incident. She knew that she'd messed up and hurt Emma badly last night, and it killed her. Just as she knew that it would almost break her to explain her reaction to Emma's come on. She was terrified of how Emma would react to what she was about to confess, and even more scared of how Snow would take it. She loved Emma more than she'd ever loved anyone and she didn't want the confeesions of what had happened to her in the past to drive the woman she loved away, as she feared they would. Or worse, they could make Snow forbid her from being with Emma.  
She steeled herself and knocked on the door. David answered almost immeadiately.

"Come in Regina" he said gently. Regina walked cautioudly into the apartment. Pain tore at her heart when she caught sight of Emma on the couch, the evidence of last night, shining purple round her throat. But despite the damage Regina had done, all three of them looked at her with nothing but sympathy and concern in their eyes.

"Regina I'm so sorry for coming on too strong, I scared you and I get that and I'm sorry" Emma said, shattering the silence.

"Emma have you looked at yourself? What are you apologizing for? I'm the one who should be sorry" Regina protested at the idea of Emma trying to apologize to her after what she'd done.

"I just want to understand you Regina" Emma pleaded.

"What you need to understand first, is that your grandmother's death, changed your grandfather. He wasn't the same after. He completely lost the ability to love anyone. Snow tell me if you can't handle hearing this okay?" Regina paused, looking at Snow with concern.

"Regina if you were to say right now that Leopold sexually abused you, I would not be even the slightest bit surprised" Snow admitted, her voice starting to shake.  
"Snow what would make you believe something like that of your own father so quickly?" Regina asked, truly concerned. Already suspecting the answer but praying desperately that she was wrong.

"Because he did it to me. And if he could hurt his only daughter like that, I dread to think what he did to you" Snow confessed, before crumbling completely. David and Emma looked appalled at Snow's admission. The thought that anybody could treat their child like that was just too awful to comprehend.

"Oh Snow. I am truly sorry that he did that to you. I had wondered, but I told myself that he was hurting me so much that he wouldn't hurt you as well. I'd have done something if I'd known. I would have been nicer to you" Regina said, wrapping her sobbing stepdaughter into her arms.

"I was too scared to come to you after I blew your chances with Daniel. I thought if I came to you for help, that you would start on me too" Smow told her.

"Oh my darling, I would never have hurt you like that. I understand how awful it feels when a parent violates your trust. Because..."  
Regina broke off scared to finish the sentence and unable to hold off her sobs any longer.

"Regina babe, please talk to me. What's wrong?" Emma asked, not toucging Regina after her reactions last night.

"When I was Henry's age, Cora started to visit my bed at night. She used to make me pleasure her, and sometimes she would touch me, refusing to let me go until I told her that I loved her, that I was her good little girl. I hated her for touching me in a way that no mother should touch her child. But I hated myself even more for the way I just lay there and took it. Sometimes I even enjoyed it, I got so used to it" Regina confessed, pausing often to release a sob from her throat.

"Oh Regina, I am so, so sorry that so much shit happened to you. I swear to you that I will never touch you without your consent, ever!" Emma promised, enveloping her girlfriend and her mother in a fierce hug.

"I just had to be honest with you Emma. I'm sorry I wasn't until now I just didn't want to scare you away" Regina sobbed, not even caring that David and Snow were there anymore.

"I will never leave you Regina" Emma promised fiercely.

"Both of you have our full support Regina. I understand now, why you did what you did, even taking Graham's heart makes sense now" David said, still looking shocked by what his wife had just admitted. He knew how much strength it must've taken Regina to admit her worst secrets to anybody, much less him and Snow and he had immense respect for her because of it.

"Thank you for listening and understanding, all of you" Regina said, looking relieved that she was no longer hiding these secrets and suffering alone. A huge weight had lifted from her chest when she finally told someone the truth and she could finally allow herself to relax in Emma's embrace, knowing that Emma would never hurt her as Cora and Leopold had. Emma could heal the holes in her heart and repair the hideous damage that her mother and former husband had done.


	9. Chapter 9

Emma took a deep breath, steeling herself for what she was about to do. It had been two weeks since Regina and Snow had told the truth about their childhoods and the two of them had bonded more over the last few days than ever before. Regina's confession hadn't turned Emma away, as she had feared; it had only made Emma love her more. Emma knew from her time in the foster system, what it felt like to be physically abuse by the people that were meant to protect you, and Regina telling her the truth had made Emma more fiercely protective of her damaged lover. She wanted to be with Regina forever, there was just one more loose end she had to tie up first.

She walked into Gold's shop and called for him;

"What can I do for you today dearie?" he asked her, coming out when he heard her call.

"I was planning on visiting Neal today and wondered if you would join me? I wanted to talk to you anyway" Emma told him.

"Of course dearie, I wondered when you would find the courage to visit him" Gold said. He flicked his wrist and Emma was engulfed in pink smoke. When the smoke dissipated, Emma and Gold were in the graveyard.

"I take it that you wanted to talk to me about Regina?" Gold asked her.

"Yeah I did, I mean, would Neal have wanted me to move on?" Emma asked, biting her lip.

"You and my son were never truly in love, he left you in prison, alone and pregnant, and when we found him again you only got to be together briefly. I'm not judging you for moving on and neither would he. My son never judged anyone, not even me" Gold said, kneeling by the grave.

"Regina's changed so much since I first met her, she's opening up slowly. She told my parents and me something huge a couple of weeks ago" Emma confessed.

"And what was it that our dear Queen chose to divulge to you and two of her worst enemies, of all people" Rumple asked curiously.

"Something awful from her past, I'm sure she wouldn't want everyone knowing, especially not you" Emma told him, but Rumple could tell that whatever it was bothered Emma a lot.

"I wouldn't normally pry, but I can tell that it really bothers you, Emma, and I think that I know what she told you. You forget that I've known Regina a very long time, I started teaching her magic when she was very young and I know all about Cora's unconventional parenting methods" Gold told her.

"What kind of sick twisted bitch would do that to their own kid? I mean, a lot of my foster parents hit me, but none of them ever went that far" Emma said.

"Cora was a special breed of evil that even someone as evil as me struggles to understand. Regina may not know this, but it is because of Cora that she cannot bear children" Rumple admitted.

"Did you know about my grandfather as well?" Emma asked.

"No I didn't know for certain but I did suspect as much. Eva's death broke Leopold completely, he was never the same after" Rumple said.

"Regina wasn't Leopold's only victim" Emma said, her voice breaking. Rumple looked at her with horror when he realized who Emma meant.

"How anyone could do that to a girl as sweet as Snow White is completely beyond me. Did Regina know?" Rumple asked with horror.

"Not until two weeks ago, not even Dad knew" Emma choked out before bursting into loud sobs. Emma had clearly been holding back her tears since she had found out the truth, because she didn't even recoil when Rumple embraced her.

"You don't have to be the strong one all the time Emma. Snow and Regina know that even the strongest people need saving sometimes" Rumple reassured her.

"But I'm the Saviour" she choked.

"Only when you want to be Dearie" he said.

"I have to ask. Did you ever? With Regina I mean….."

"No Dearie, I may be the Dark One, but even I never stooped to rape, I promise' Rumple assured her.

"Emma I thought I might find you here, I've been looking for you, I was worried" Regina called out from a few meters away. She had Snow with her and the two of them seemed to be enjoying each other's company for at last.

"I wanted to pay my respects to Neal one last time, before I committed to you forever. Without him, we wouldn't have Henry" Emma explained, wiping her tears forcefully, not wanting to look weak in front of Regina.

"Dear, Rumple's right, you don't have to be the strong one all the time. What Snow and I told you was a lot to take in, you're allowed to be upset" Regina told her lover, enveloping her in a hug.

"Have you been here that long? " Emma asked, shocked that she hadn't noticed.

"We got here just as you were telling Rumple told you that he already knew the truth about what Cora did to Regina" Snow confessed.

"And he was telling you the truth when he said that he never laid a finger on me" Regina promised.

"Okay then let's go home. Thank you for listening Rumple" Emma said.

"My pleasure Dearie and if the three of you need anything don't hesitate to ask. No payment required, consider it my way of assuaging my guilt for not saving you from your tormentors" Rumple said before disappearing in a puff of smoke.


	10. Chapter 10

"Regina there's something else that Rumple told me that he wasn't sure if you knew about" Emma told her lover hesitantly.

"What is it dear?" Regina asked worried.

"I think it would be best if you took us all home first babe, this is pretty bad" Emma warned her. Regina nodded and the three of them were enveloped in a cloud of purple smoke.

"Now what is it that's so bad Emma?" Regina demanded. Emma made Regina sit down, while she poured drinks for three of them. Snow looked really worried about what Emma might be about to tell them and about how Regina could react to whatever the news was.

"Regina love, there's no easy way to tell you this so I'm just going to come out with it. Rumple told me that your mother cursed you so that you can never have children, she made you infertile" Emma told her, looking terrified about what Regina might do.

"Well that explains why Leopold failed to get me pregnant, even before I placed the same spell on him. I did always wonder if my infertility might not have natural causes" Regina said, looking oddly calm.

"Why on earth did you curse my father Regina?" Snow asked, looking more confused than angry.

"Because I already suspected that I was not his only victim dear, I told myself than that he wouldn't hurt you but I had to make sure that if he was hurting you that he couldn't get you pregnant" Regina explained.

"But how come you're not upset about this babe? I'd have thought that you'd be furious" Emma questioned.

"What's the point of being upset Emma? I'm dating a woman, whom I love very much and as much as I love you, two women cannot make a baby together, so nothing has really changed anyway" Regina pointed out. Emma leaned in to give Regina a kiss and Snow turned away discreetly.

"Okay Mom, you can look now" Emma chuckled.

"Thank you Regina for looking out for me" Snow said.

"That's quite alright dear" Regina assured her.

"Oh my gosh, now that I've finally got both of you here and getting along, can we please watch the Disney version of Snow White?" Emma begged.

"Okay then my love" Regina said indulgently. Emma squealed like a happy child and called David and Henry to join them. She made popcorn while she was waiting for them and the family settled on to the couch to watch the made up version of their lives.

"Oh come on, I dressed way better than that and I never made Snow wear servant's clothes" Regina protested a few minutes in, Emma and Henry just laughed.

"I did not sing to you when I met you, as I recall I tried to rob you" Snow White said incredulously.

"You were way tougher than this pathetic fool, Snow dear" Regina said as on screen Snow fled from the Huntsman with a scream of terror.

"And Graham was a lot better looking" Emma said, earning a squeeze from Regina.

"Oh Regina don't be silly, you know I love you" Emma reassured her.

"Oh look, Snow White going into an empty house and snooping around, finally something accurate" Regina snarled a moment later, earning her a playful smack on the arm from Snow.

"The real Grumpy is nothing like that" David chuckled.

"Oh my god, why is this queen obsessed with being prettier than you? I already was" Regina complained.

"Wait till it gets to the transformation scene" Henry cracked up, Emma laughed with him. But when it got to the transformation scene, everyone was laughing except Regina, who waited till the right moment and then hurled a fireball at the screen, which just made everyone laugh more, until; Regina eventually joined in.

"You are going to fix that later Gina, but I won't make you watch anymore, we all know exactly how that story ends anyway, even if Disney got it all wrong" Emma said, giving her lover an affectionate peck.


	11. Chapter 11

"_Please Leopold, please don't do this to me" Regina begged, sobbing in pain as her husband tore is night her body, as he had been doing since the day they had been married. But nothing, no amount of crying or pleading, had ever made him stop. So she endured. She let him tear her body apart, because if she didn't, then her mother would tear her body apart._

_Poor Regina was just barely 19 years old, and her body had already suffered more violations than any woman should ever have to. Whether it was from her mother, or from the man who had vowed to love and protect her. A tiny voice broke her out of her thoughts;_

"_Father, please stop hurting her" Snow White begged. Leopold broke away from Regina to look at his little girl. Regina was relieved, believing that the child had saved her at least for this night, but her relief quickly turned to horror when she realized that Leopold intended to do to his daughter, what he had just been doing to her._

"_Leopold she's only a child, leave her alone" Regina screamed, trying to pull Leopold away._

"_I love you I'm sorry take me instead, I'll do anything, just please don't hurt her; she's only 11" Regina begged and cried, trying desperately to pull her husband off her stepdaughter. Snow was screaming and crying beneath her father, pleading for him to stop, but then she spoke directly to Regina;_

"_Run now Mother, this is your chance, run!" Regina stayed glued to the spot in horror; she could hear another woman's voice calling her name;_

"_Regina, Regina, please wake up" the voice called urgently._

Regina sat bolt upright with a scream, her body was drenched in sweat and her face was soaked with tears. Emma was sitting up beside her, looking extremely worried.

"You were having a nightmare, Gina, but you're okay, I've got you, I love you and I will never let you go" Emma promised, enveloping her terrified lover in a tight hug. Regina sobbed into Emma's shoulder as Emma rubbed her back soothingly. That's when Emma noticed the blood.

"Oh darling, you must've been scratching in your sleep, come with me and let's get your arm cleaned up". Regina finally saw what Emma was referring to. Huge scratches marked the pale skin of her arm, and blood dripped from the wounds. She allowed Emma to carry her into the bathroom and start cleaning out the cuts on her arm. Emma was gentle, but efficient as she tended to her lovers wounds, kissing each one as she covered the cuts with gauze. When she was done, she pulled Regina into her lap and kissed her hair soothingly. Regina looked up into Emma, sparkling, emerald eyes, before leaning in for a fierce, but protective kiss on the lips. The sound of Emma's cell phone brought them out of their embrace. Who could possibly be calling at this hour?

"Emma I need you and Regina to come here as quickly as possible "David half shouted when Emma picked up the phone. He hung up before Emma could reply and Emma looked up at Regina with a worried expression.

"Take us to my parents no" Emma said, Regina took her hand without a word and within seconds, they arrived in the Charming's living room to find a terrified looking David, rocking a screaming Neal.

"What happened" Emma demanded.

"Snow was having a nightmare, and when I woke her up I suggested she go and have a bath to calm down but she locked the door and she's been in there for nearly an hour and she won't answer me when I try to talk to her" David explained, looking like he was trying very hard not to cry.

"Well then what are we still down here for let's break in" Emma said before rushing upstairs. David and Regina hesitated until they heard Emma let out a blood curdling scream. The two of them bolted up the stairs, prepared for almost anything. Anything except the sight that awaited them;

Emma was screaming hysterically, glued to the spot just inside the bathroom door. Snow was lying in the bath, head hanging over the edge, the water blood red. Regina screamed and David fell to his knees and puked all over the floor and the baby. Henry came running, the commotion finally having woken him up. The boy took a second to take in the horrific scene before him, before he screamed.

Hearing Henry's scream, snapped Regina into action. She moved towards the bath, instructing Henry to take Neal and clean him up and watch him. She and Emma lifted Snow out of the bath and with Emma holding her hand, Regina began to heal the many cuts on her stepdaughter's body.

"Stay with us my sweet girl, we all love you and Neal needs you, Henry needs you, Emma needs you, David needs you. Rumplestiltskin help us please" Regina cried. Rumple materialized beside them at the mention of his name and gasped in horror at the sight before him. He dropped to his knees and began helping Regina to heal Snow's cuts, as Regina was struggling to keep it together.

Please Snow, I need you, I love you" Regina wept. She bent and placed a kiss on Snow's forehead. Snow White suddenly let out a shaky breath as Rumple healed the last of her wounds and her eyes fluttered open.

"I love you too Mother" she said.


	12. Chapter 12

Regina was feeling absolutely exhausted. It had been a few hours since she and Gold had healed Snow, but the effect of using that much magic was still taking its' toll on her. Then there had been Henry to deal with.

He'd been justifiably upset at seeing his grandmother unconscious, in a pool of her own blood. Having to explain what Snow had been trying to do, and on top of that, having to explain why had destroyed Regina emotionally. Henry had not taken it well when Regina, Emma and Charming, had explained what both Regina and Snow had suffered in the Enchanted Forest. He'd wanted to run off and kill Leopold, and couldn't be calmed down until Regina reminded him that she already did kill Leopold and that there was no grave in Storybrooke for Henry to destroy.

Once Henry had finally calmed down, Charming and Emma, took him back to the mansion. Regina stayed behind, insisting that she wanted to be with Snow.

"How are you feeling dear?" Regina asked, entering Snow's bedroom and finding her sitting up.

"Ï just tried to kill myself, but then the woman who spent most of my adult life trying to kill me herself, saved me" Snow said quietly.

"Snow darling, we need to put all that behind us now. I love you and I love Emma, and I would never do anything to hurt either one of you again" Regina said, fighting back tears.

"Ï know that now Regina. I've watched how hard you've tried to turn things around and you deserve to be happy. But I can see that there is a huge part of you that is afraid to take the plunge with Emma and I can't help wondering why?" Snow asked.

"I'm scared you won't approve, I'm scared that I won't be good enough for her, I'm scared of getting hurt again, I'm scared I'll hurt her, if something bad happens, what if I become evil again?" Regina confessed, properly sobbing now.

"Regina, stop overthinking things, Charming and I do approve of you, we love you just the way you are and so does Emma. She won't hurt you the way Leopold did and none of us will ever let you fall down the path of darkness again" Snow reassured her, reaching out to give Regina a hug.

"So I have you blessing to marry Emma?"

"Yes of course you do if that's what you both want, nothing would make me happier than seeing both of you get your happy ending" Snow beamed.

"Well don't get too excited too soon Snow, I still need to think, and then I will have to talk to Henry before I formally ask David for his permission"

"Formally ask my permission for what?" David asked, coming into the room. Regina froze in shock.

"I told Regina that she needs to grab her happy ending while she can and propose to Emma" Snow told him.

"You really are terrible at keeping secrets, some things never change Snow. Anyway David, I was going to come and ask for your blessing, I know that nobody does that in this world but I was brought up that way" Regina admitted.

"Well of course you have our permission Regina, but take a day or two to think and then talk with Henry, everyone is a bit shaken up after last night and you all need some rest" David said, also embracing Regina.

"Thank you both, now I better get home and get some sleep" Regina said smiling.


	13. Chapter 13

"How are you holding up, darling?" Regina asked Henry. It had been a week since Snow's attempted suicide and Emma had been spending more time with her parents. Regina had decided to take the opportunity to discuss her intentions of proposing to Emma, with their son.

"I'm fine Mom, really, I'm recovering from the shock now after talking to Grandma and Gramps" Henry assured his mother.

"Well I'm glad to hear that dear, what Snow did shocked all of us, after all those years I spent trying to kill her, I finally realized just how much I love her" Regina admitted.

"It's great that you guys are getting on, so I guess something good did come out of it" Henry mused.

"We've been getting on better ever since Emma and I started dating, and then when the truth came out the day after Emma and I had that fight at the bar, things got really good between all of us" Regina told him.

"How are things between you and Emma now" Henry asked curiously.

"Well that's actually what I wanted to talk to you about today, Henry dear" Regina began hesitantly.

"Are you thinking of breaking up with her?" Henry asked fearfully.

"No Henry, nothing like that, in fact, just the opposite" Regina assured him.

"What do you mean" he asked. Regina took a deep breath and decided to just come out and say it.

"I was actually thinking of asking Emma to marry me. I already talked to Snow and David, and they are both completely behind the idea, but I wanted to get you opinion before I made a statement that would have a huge effect on you" Regina said, watching her son's face cautiously.

"What effect would it have on me, Mom? You're both already my moms and I've been wanting you to get married from the first day that you got together. I would be happiest if I wasn't moving between houses all the time, and if you and Ma are happy, then nothing else matters to me" Henry said, wrapping Regina in a big hug.

"Well if you're okay with it, then it's only a matter of working out how I'm going to do this. Should it be a low key dinner here, or should I take her out somewhere?" Regina asked Henry.

"You should make her dinner here, and then have apple cider in the study, and then take her out to the doorstep where you first met her, and propose there" Henry suggested.

"How is it that my son, manages to come up with the most perfect romantic ideas? You're only 14 Henry and yet you're completely right, thank you" Regina said, smiling at how wonderful her son had turned out, thanks, in part to her beautiful Emma.


	14. Chapter 14

"So what are you three being so secretive and happy about?" Emma demanded of Henry and her parents. It wasn't as if she didn't know that Regina had dinner plans for her tonight, she'd already texted to invite her over for dinner that evening.

"Oh nothing, enjoy dinner tonight, Emma love but are you really wearing that" Snow asked her.

"What's wrong with this dress?" Emma asked, looking down at it. She was wearing a simple red dress with a low neck and a pair of heels.

"Mom likes you just the way you are Ma, red leather jackets, skinny jeans and all, let me get you the clothes I think you should wear?" Henry said, running off without waiting for a reply. He came back with clothes a few minutes later. Emma raised her eyebrows at the choice.

"Wasn't this the same outfit I wore the day I brought you back here?" she asked him.

"Yeah it was now change and hurry up, you know Mom hates to be kept waiting" Henry told her. Emma went up to her room to change feeling extremely confused

Emma pondered her family's weird behaviour as she drove towards Mifflin Street, but she shook it off as nothing important, and smiled as she pulled into the driveway and saw Regina standing in the doorway wearing an oddly familiar grey dress.

"Are we both somehow, dressed just as we were the day we met?" Emma asked, planting a kiss on Regina's cheek.

"It would appear so, but come in dinner's ready" Regina told her, leading Emma in by the hand.

Dinner was wonderful, but Emma could tell that Regina had something on her mind by the time they had gone into the study for drinks.

"What's wrong Gina?" Emma asked her, looking concerned.

"Nothing is wrong dear, nothing could be more right, I was just wondering…."

"Wondering what babe? I'll do anything you want you know that" Emma assured her.

"Would you and Henry both like to move in permanently?" Regina asked her.

"Oh my god Gina, is that what you were so afraid to ask, of course Henry and I would love to move in. Mom and Dad will get over it if that's what's worrying you" Emma said, pulling Regina on to her lap for a rapturous kiss.

"Of course I thought you'd agree Emma but it is a huge commitment" Regina pointed out.

"I know that babe, but I want to if you want to" Emma said.

"I love you so much Emma. Will you come and sit on the porch with me?" Regina asked, Emma nodded and followed her looking confused. Once Emma stepped out onto the porch, she felt Regina stop moving and turned back to her in confusion.

Regina was down on one knee, holding a tiny, glittering ring, Emma gasped

"Emma Swan" Regina began, "Here we are in the spot we first met. If someone had told me then, that I would one day be proposing to you in this exact, spot, I would probably have ripped out their heart. But Emma, it is thanks to you and your son that an Evil Queen, learned to love again, became human. I love you Emma, from the bottom of my heart. Will you do me the honour of marrying me?" Regina asked, they both had tears streaming down their cheeks by this point and all Emma could do was sink to the ground nodding.

"It is thanks to you and your son that this Lost Girl finally found home and family, finally learned to trust people. Of course I want to spend the rest of my life with you" Emma told her and for a while the two of them just sat there, holding each other and kissing.


End file.
